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Supply chain

Highlights of the day: Tight supply at TSMC, not just for 7nm

DIGITIMES staff

Friday 27 September 2019

TSMC sees strong demand not just for its 7nm manufacturing node. Some of Taiwan's IC designers have reported that they have been unable to secure full support for their demand from the foundry house's 16nm, 12nm and 10nm nodes that are also becoming tight in supply. In fact, many Taiwanese IC design service providers have seen strong demand from Chinese clients keen on developing their own CPUs and GPUs in line with China's ambition to significantly improve its semiconductor self-sufficiency, the importance of which has been underlined by the country's ongoing trade war with the US.

TSMC 16nm, 12nm and 10nm chip supply becomes tight: In addition to its tight 7nm chip supply, with delivery lead times extending to over six months, pure-play foundry TSMC has seen its supply of 16nm, 12nm and 10nm chips also fall short of demand recently, according to industry sources.

More Chinese firms developing advanced-node CPUs in-house: More China-based firms have become keen on in-house development of new-generation CPUs and GPUs, allowing Taiwan IC design service providers, especially those associated with TSMC, to enjoy clear order visibility for 2020 for helping with chip designs or offering related engineering assistances, according to industry sources.

The coronavirus outbreak has disrupted production and weakened consumer confidence, with all ICT sectors bracing for major declines in shipments. Digitimes Research has conducted analyses on three mobile device sectors, namely notebooks, smartphones and tablets in the wake of the outbreak.